KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed almost flat on Tuesday as buying interest rotated away from index heavyweights towards smaller-cap construction stocks, with sentiment affected by geopolitical uncertainty, said an analyst. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.39 of a point to 1,714.40 from Monday’s close of 1,714.79. The benchmark index opened 1.65 points lower at 1,713.14 and moved between 1,710.44 and 1,714.50 throughout the trading session. The broader market was almost evenly balanced, with decliners leading gainers 548 to 546, while 598 counters were unchanged, 1,107 were untraded and 25 were suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.13 billion units valued at RM3.14 billion from 3.60 billion units valued at RM2.45 billion on Monday.
Well, the oil price drop definitely hurt Russia. Then, we have the sanctions. We also have the sharp drop in the Russia's Rubble currency. What's next? HIGHER PRICES FOR EVERYTHING! The Russians definitely are feeling the pinch now, as they are facing higher prices for everything. It's more expensive to buy eggs, dairy products, poultry and vegetables now. Apple halted the online store there, just three weeks after an increase in the price of an iPhone 6 for about 25% to 39,990 rubles...even then, the value of that iPhone sales when converted to dollar already has plummeted to about $585 from $847. The same thing goes to McDonald's. The company increase the price of Big Mac by 2.2% to about 94 rubles....only to see the value drop from $1.77 to $1.35 in the intervening days. Renault-brand cars have been increased by 8% in Russia. Now, most Russians believe they have to snap up consumer goods before prices continue to go up. ...